A Little Kneeology…..1 Corinthians 3:3 (NLT) “ for you are still controlled by your sinful nature. You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other. Doesn’t that prove you are controlled by your sinful nature? Aren’t you living like people of the world?”
Paul speaks of a tool of destruction used on a regular basis by the enemy to destroy ministries and their leadership, that of jealousy.
I am reminded of a good example of how jealousy between ministries can be detrimental. In our community, some of the churches got together and invited an awesome youth evangelist to come to one of cities in our region along with several Christian bands and other speakers. The crusade drew youth from communities beyond expectations and the numbers of responses for Christ were fantastic every night with the altar call lasting for a couple of hours. Contact cards were completed for follow up. A few weeks later as I attended a meeting of the ministerial alliance in that community, I asked how the follow up was going? One of the pastors responded by saying we are trying to figure out who gets the cards. The problem, as it seemed, was if the youth who responded were going to join a church, shouldn’t it be the one who sponsored the larger part of the event? I choked! My response was that I didn’t care where they would go just as long as they would be going and that they would come to know Jesus. Two years later no one knew where the follow up cards were. Jealousy has won its victory.
The enemy wins every time we allow jealousy to interfere in our ministries and what is supposed to be a unified effort to introduce people to Christ Jesus. I have always found that churches and ministries that are jealous for their own are full of fear and a sense of security. They are certainly not content and are focused on what they consider theirs instead of the Kingdom. When the enemy detects envy, jealousy, and greed, guess where he is going to attack. Those who are jealous for their own seem to lose focus of the actual ownership of the ministry. We must guard against such envy and jealousy by developing a strong union in purpose with other ministries in the effort to not only tell others about Jesus, but to show Him in our actions as well.
I recently told a friend that I would not want to have the only church in town, as not only would it be such an over whelming experience, but I know that I could not care for the needs of everyone.
Recently, the Lord gave me a word saying, “It not about needing more churches but the churches uniting in their effort and being instruments of the Kingdom.”
I truly believe that TMCI is a splendid example of that word as it is composed of many ministries that are independent but connected in the effort to bring Jesus to people and the people to Jesus.
May we all find our peace in unity and our identity not in our ministries but in Christ Jesus. Amen?
NOTW, Bro. Mike
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